Lake Livingston State Park

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Look Vince!  I learned how to add maps!

I brought in the new year on a camping trip with my outdoor group at Lake Livingston State Park.  We rented screened shelters beside the lake.  I spent the night in the loft of one of them.  It was not enclosed by actual walls, so if I had not snuggled into 2 sleeping bags layered together, the cold wind would probably have made me miserable.  In the winter, I take a lightweight fleece bag and stuff it inside a regular sleeping bag which is rated to 50 degrees.  I find layers to be much cozier and warmer than any one bag.  There was a guy sleeping on the floor below me in one cold weather bag and he said he felt the wind.  I don't think he was as comfortable as I was.  A tarp could probably be rigged to help block some of the wind.  During the summer months, there would be plenty of room for an air mattress in the loft and the breeze might be more welcome.  There is electricity in the shelters.           

Most people opted to set up tents.  Eight people are allowed per site whether they sleep inside or out.  We used three sites, one for gathering and eating, two for sleeping, and everyone pitched their tents at shelter site 4 because it had plenty of relatively flat ground suitable for camping.  

We had a potluck dinner.  Every time I car camp with BCO there is more food than we could possibly eat.  I brought tamales, but didn't even bring them out until breakfast because there was too much food.  It was BYOB, but people brought plenty of that to share as well.  Consumption of alcohol is not allowed in public areas of Texas state parks.  (Interiors of shelters, cabins, tents, and campers are not public areas.)  As long as we keep it in our campsite and don't get too rowdy, we never have a problem.     

In the morning, we went on a ranger-led hike.  I learned a few bits of useful information.  This is palmetto.  Any place you see these is not a good place to pitch your tent.  Palmettos thrive in areas where standing water collects.  If you are camped next to these and it rains, you're getting wet.


This is poison ivy.  "Leaves of three, let it be."  You don't want to touch this one.  The middle leaf is symmetrical, while the other 2 leaves are smooth on the inside edge and have pointy lobes on the outside.

We did a little geocaching and I tried to get video with my new Flip Mino HD, but I mostly got footage of the ground and people's behinds.  I'll see what I can do with the editing software...         

Self-Employment

Tomorrow's getting harder, make no mistake
Luck ain't even lucky, gotta make your own breaks 


   - Bon Jovi



I've been thinking about what direction I want to take with my blog and my life in the new year.  I'm planning trips with my outdoor group, so I'm hoping to do more of those types of posts.  Those are the ones that get Google traffic.  Maybe one day I'll set up a blog entirely devoted to outdoor adventures.  I've read that to earn money blogging you have to choose a niche and stick with it.  One blog is all that I can manage right now, so that's on the backburner. 

I really like the idea of being my own boss.  I can't get laid off...I earn according to how much effort I make...I won't be stuck with a boss who's setting me up to fail...

I'm not sending any more resumes out until February.  I want to spend January seeing how many Avon customers I can find.  I know there are people out there that are able to earn a living doing this.  A woman in the UK recently became the first Avon millionaire.  It took her 6 years.  She became an Avon rep after being laid off from her job.  She's my new hero.    http://www.21stcenturynetworker.com/2010/09/01/bbc-news-sunderland-woman-becomes-first-avon-millionaire/

I'll be back to your blogs on January 1.  I miss you guys.

He Only Has Himself to Blame

Holy crap!  The new guy's wife sent me a message on Facebook.  He told me that she had met someone else and decided she didn't want to be married any more.  That's not her version of the story.  Her version has him cheating with many different women.  She wants my help to decide what to do?  If her version is true and she still doesn't know the answer, I can't help her.

I've blocked them both.

Avon Update and Giveaway: Door to Door is Working

I've been reading the Avon forums and the biggest complaint seems to be running all over town to get a few dollars here and a few dollars there.  I've decided to concentrate my efforts on going door to door in my neighborhood so my customers won't be scattered all over.  I usually spend 2 or 3 hours and gain one customer each time.  That doesn't seem like a lot, but once I find them most have been reordering.  On Saturday, I didn't even knock.  I just put old brochures on doors.  I've gotten two phone calls so far!  If I can gain an average of one customer a week maybe I can eventually build up a healthy customer base.  If I take advantage of the free expired brochures my upline sometimes provides, I can gain even more.

I'm trying to grow my online business, as well.  My previous giveaway of assorted products was so successful, I'm doing it again.  Maybe this will become a monthly event.  It's a fun way to introduce people to Avon and a good use for some of the items I bought to increase my earnings level.  (If my order is 120 dollars, I'll buy another 25 dollars worth so I can earn 30% instead of 20%.)  

This time I'm giving away the following items, pictured above, with a total value of $50.

1)  Naturals Hydrating Shampoo:  Banana and Coconut Milk

2)  Naturals Hydrating Conditioner:  Banana and Coconut Milk

3)  Skin So Soft Mini:  Soft and Sensual replenishing body lotion

4)Naturals Shower Gel:  glazed apple and walnut

5)  Astonishing Lengths Mascara:  black

6)  Ultra Color Rich Lipstick:  wineberry

7)  Glazewear Shine Lip Gloss:  darling pink

8)  Glimmersticks Diamonds eye liner:  black ice

9)  Precision Glimmer powder eyeshadow:  classic mocha

REQUIRED ENTRY:  Leave one comment telling me your favorite Avon product.  If you've never tried Avon, tell me which product would most likely be your first purchase.

ADDITIONAL ENTRIES:  After the required entry, earn additional entries by doing the following:

One additional entry (leave one additional comment):  Follow me on GFC.

One additional entry:  Follow me on Twitter.     http://twitter.com/Jnnfr271  

Two additional entries (leave two additional comments):  Tweet about this contest.  

Copy and paste:

Enter to win Avon swag: $50 value...http://jnnfr271.blogspot.com/2010/12/avon-update-and-giveaway-door-to-door.html

Three additional entries:  Register at my online store, no purchase required:    http://jenniferdavidson.avonrepresentative.com/

The winner will be chosen using Random.org, will be notified by email, and will have 48 hours to respond.  Please remember to leave your email address if it is not listed in your public profile.

Sorry, contest is open to US residents only.   

Last day to enter:  January 30, 2011.         

         

You're Not the One for Me

Well my heart knows me better than I know myself
So I'm gonna let it do all the talking.

  -  KT Tunstall





I've deleted the new guy from my Facebook friend list and am done with him as well.  I told him to call when he was ready to go on an actual date and take me out to dinner or something.  He never did.  I'm done playing on the phone.  If I'm not worth seeing in person, he's not worth my minutes.  My mantra for the new year:  Make some time or make yourself disappear.   

I'm happy to be home.  I'm scheduling backpacking and camping trips with my outdoor group.  I sent out two resumes and got two interviews.  I'm slowly building my Avon business.  I'll get back to blogging daily in the new year.  Maybe I'll try to post 365...

Pissing the Night Away

I get knocked down but I get up again
You're never gonna keep me down

  - Chumbawamba



They actually censored that line? 

I haven't felt much like blogging the last week or so.  I have one more Hawaii post to make and a few more giveaways...all will happen soon.  I'm just taking a break.  I will be back.

Germaine's Luau

Bus 2 Plus 1

I was pretty miserable for a little while.  I didn't know that was possible in Hawaii.  I was ticked off that Wyoming was obviously not interested in hanging out with me but didn't have the guts to tell me - he just kept making excuses and let me figure it out.  I had one especially awful night in which I was missing my daughter.  I wanted to get on a plane and come home early.  But I came all this way and spent all that money - I was going to get out of my room and try to have a good time, dammit.  I went downstairs to the lobby to book some tours.

The woman at the activities desk told me I could save $100 if I talked to the gentleman at the next desk and agreed to take a tour of the Wyndham Properties.  "Are you employed full time?" he asked.

Avon.  "I'm self-employed."

"OK.  Do you have an annual income of at least $75,000?"
     
Uncle Sam said I earned $80,000 last year and taxed me accordingly.  "Yes, I do."

I signed a piece of paper and got a free luau plus $30 off a car rental.  "Make it a convertible."

I boarded Bus 1 to Germaine's Luau at 4:20.  You might think that would be a sign that I was boarding the party bus.  You'd be wrong.  Once I got to the luau, I looked around for a table that might have some fun people.  I chose well.  Bus 2 was the party bus.  They immediately introduced themselves and started talking to me.  The guy front and center in the picture at top volunteered for the men's dance-off.  They brought him on stage wearing a grass skirt and coconut bra.  I wish I'd recorded his dance.  He was hilarious.  He easily won.

The guys were so disappointed...

   

I wish I had my Flip before I left for Hawaii. The video would be in HD and I'd have the software to edit and rotate.

Bus 2 tried to adopt me.  They said they had some empty seats on their bus, but I wasn't sure how far I'd have to stumble back to my own hotel.  I should have taken them up on their offer.  Normally, the ride back to Waikiki is a continuation of the party.  On my previous trips, the guides taught us cute little songs and had people dancing and laughing...not bus 2 on November 20.  She turned off the lights and let all the wet blankets sleep.

Oh, well...at least I didn't spend the night miserable and alone in my room.